The Historical Society of Orange Park

Transcription

1 The Historical Society of Orange Park Newsletter Monthly Meeting Monday, August 13, :30 PM Clarke House 1039 Kingsley Avenue Orange Park, FL There will be no monthly meeting in July. Our next monthly meeting will be August 13. Recent Events June Monthly Meeting The featured speaker at our June meeting was Mrs. Karen Roumillat of the Mandarin Museum and Historical Society. Karen spoke to us about her family s history in Mandarin and the founding of the Mandarin Museum and Historical Society. A focus of Karen s presentation was the history of her family in Mandarin, particularly that of Walter Jones, her great-grandfather, and Agnes Miss Aggie Jones, her great aunt. Both Walter and his daughter, Miss Aggie, ran the Post Office and General Store in Mandarin at the corner of Mandarin Road and Brady Road. Due to their vocation, they were at the center of life in Mandarin and were well-known by all Mandarin residents. Karen also shared a few photographs from Mandarin s past as part of her presentation. We encourage everyone to visit the Walter Jones Historical Park on Mandarin Road. The park includes several historical buildings, a boardwalk along the St. Johns River and the Mandarin Museum. It s a great place to relax and enjoy nature as well as get a taste of local history. Karen Roumillat

2 Page 2 High Tea The High Tea at the Basketique, 727 Kingsley Avenue in Orange Park, was a wonderful event. Twenty ladies enjoyed an afternoon of delicious food and of course tea! The event also raised almost $100 for the new Veterans Memorial. Basketique owner, Patricia Sessions, was most gracious and made our event very special. The Basketique can accommodate up to 25 guests, so if you are planning a get together in the future please give Pat a call at to make a reservation. Members and friends of the Historical Society of Orange Park enjoy a High Tea at Basketique

3 Page 3 Golden Gala Awards Congratulations to our own Virginia Hash, winner of this year s Golden gala award for Volunteer Lifetime Achievement. Virginia devotes a great deal of her free time to serving others and improving life for those in our community. We are pleased to know that she has been recognized for her efforts and ask everyone to join us in congratulating Virginia on this notable achievement. (L to R) Ken Amaro, Virginia Hash and the Shepherd Center s Cindy Steward Upcoming Events Clay County Library Genealogy Discussion Group Photo Restoration Presenters: George and Chris Bass Monday, July 9, 6:30-7:30 p.m. In the Fleming Island Library Meeting Room Chris and George will discuss techniques and the programs they use to restore pictures.

4 Page 4 Clay County Historical Society The Clay County Historical Society is on summer vacation in July and will not have a monthly meeting. Their History & Railroad Museum, 915 Walnut Street in Green Cove Springs is continually open on Sundays, 2:00pm 5:00pm, with weekday and special group tours by appointment. They wish everyone a pleasant and happy summer! Other News Clarke House Centennial Ornaments The Clarke House is 100 years old! Yes, the former home of William and Carrie Clarke and the centerpiece of our Clarke Park was built in The Historical Society of Orange Park has created a unique wood ornament that celebrates this historic site in Orange Park. These Limited Edition 100th Anniversary of Clarke House ornaments are now available for $10 each. Ornaments are on display in the Orange Park Town Hall and at all Historical Society of Orange Park events. The ornament comes boxed and ready for gift giving. Veterans Memorial for Orange Park To date we have 257 paver orders. We are busy putting together our final plans for construction of the surrounding brick wall, the installation of the granite memorial and the installation of the inscribed pavers. We want to be ready in time to dedicate the Veterans Memorial on Sunday, November 11th (Veterans Day) at 2pm so please mark your calendars now and come join us for this important community event. The Riders are to be thanked once again for another successful fourth Saturday fundraiser "Grillin' for Donations" at the Adamec Harley Davidson Store on Wells Road. Fundraising efforts will continue for the memorial. We still have many opportunities available for the purchase of inscribed pavers and we are actively seeking donations. These additional funds will be used to purchase amenities such as seating and landscaping. The new memorial will be worthy of our veterans and a source of pride for our community. We invite you to join in our efforts to create an appropriate memorial for our Veterans. We wish to honor the courage and sacrifice of all those who served and/or lost their lives while preserving our freedoms. With construction of the memorial to start soon, now is the time if you would like to honor a veteran or know of someone that would like to honor a veteran. We encourage everyone to purchase a memorial paver inscribed with the name of a veteran. We will be accepting orders for inscribed pavers at a cost of $50 through August 1. This will ensure that your paver can be installed in time for the dedication of the new memorial. Paver orders placed after August 1 will be subject to additional charges and may not be installed by the November 11. Order forms for memorial pavers are available at the North Florida Military Museum, the Orange Park Library, the Fleming Island Library, Orange Park Town Hall and Prosperity Bank on Blanding Blvd. Order forms

5 Page 5 can also be downloaded from Order forms can also be downloaded from our website at. Don t forget that we are selling raffle tickets for a beautiful, hand-made quilt by Mrs. Dot Patterson. The quilt will be raffled off to raise funds for the new memorial. The quilt is a Full/Queen size quilt in the pattern "Side by Side." Raffle tickets are $1 each or 6 for $5.00. The drawing will take place on Veterans Day, All proceeds support the Veterans Memorial project. This quilt represents many hours of work and care. We cannot thank Dot enough for her generosity. Please remember that we have Veterans Memorial lapel pins available for a $15 donation to our memorial fund. These attractive pins are a great way to show your support the new memorial. For more details on any Veterans Memorial news and fundraising activities, please contact Carolyn Ann Day at Sunshine Please send a card to these members: Earl Harrington Dot Patterson Trudy Sigman Clay County Memory By Faye Irvin Carrie C. Morrison The Other Sister Carrie C. Morrison was born January 24, 1890 in Hibernia, Fleming Island, Florida. Her father, William, was a farmer and later, the family moved into Orange Park where they lived on Plainfield Avenue. She and her sister, Mary Easterling Morrison, were confirmed in Grace Episcopal Church.

6 Page 6 Both sisters wanted to be nurses and attended St. Luke's School of Nursing in Jacksonville where they were graduated in 1914 in the same class. At the outbreak of World War I, Mary joined the U.S. Army Nursing and served in France for more than a year. Carrie used to kid her by saying, You went to France to be a nurse and came home knowing how to smoke. Carrie stayed home to take care of the old folks, their parents, because they were older and needed help. Carrie continued her nursing career at St. Luke's Hospital as well as private duty nursing. Mary Morrison St. Luke s Nursing Class of 1914 Carrie Morrison When Mary returned to civilian life, she and Carrie made their home together. They never married. Part of the answer to why not? may be because nurses were not held in high regard in that period of time, so perhaps there weren t many suitors or at least, not the kind they wanted. They built a home at 2911 Algonquin Street in Ortega where they lived until Mary passed away in Carrie and Mary cared for their family when illness struck because many members lived near them. Both are described as caring and loving; most especially Carrie. For many years, Carrie was an active member of St. Luke's Alumni Association. At the time of her death, Carrie was the oldest living nurse to graduate from St. Luke's and was in the last class to train in the old St. Luke's. Her graduation took place in the new St. Luke's. Later Carrie sold the house and went to live at Wesley Manor where she died June 6, Her funeral service was held at Grace Episcopal Church where she had been confirmed so many years ago. Carrie now rests beside her sister, Mary, in Magnolia Cemetery on Kingsley Avenue. Together again. Sources: Florida-Times Union, June 8, U. S. Census 1900, Clay County, Florida

7 Page 7 Florida Death Index, Pictures: Mrs. Jan Taft, Registered Nurse, St. Luke's Hospital, Look For Us On Facebook Look for the Historical Society of Orange Park the next time you visit Facebook. Check our page for updates on society activities and updates on the Veterans Memorial. Don t forget to click Like on our page. If you know of someone that might like to receive a copy of our newsletter, please let us know. Remember, new members are always welcome. Please pass along the following membership application to a friend.

8 , Inc. P.O. Box 08 Orange Park, FL Membership Enrollment Form Member Renewal Name (s): New Member Address: Telephone: Address: Category Number Dues Total Individual X $20 Family X $35 Senior (65 and over) X $10 Student X $10 Additional Donation Total Dues can be paid either in person at the monthly meetings or by mail. Please make checks payable to the Historical Society of Orange Park and send to: Historical Society of Orange Park P.O. Box 08 Orange Park, FL We appreciate your support!